Big Sur bluetooth problems

Performing a factory reset on my bluetooth speaker worked!

I tried about 8 different fixes to get my Megaboom 3 speaker to connect to my mac, and was resigned to just wait for the Big Sur update. But, last night, I thought I'd try perform a factory reset. For Megaboom you accomplish this by pressing the reduce volume "-" and the power button at the same time for about 6 seconds until you hear a tone. Then the speaker turns off.

When i powered it back on, my mac bluetooth detected it immediately, and it's been working great since.

The previous solution did not work for me. There was no "/Library/Audio/Plug-ins/HAL/" folder on my system.

I was able to resolve the issue by deleting the file "~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.Bluetooth.plist" followed by restarting the computer.

RWNance, did you try the solution I provided. This worked for me when all else failed. This plist file gets rebuilt. My thought is there might be residual information from Catalina that is creating an issue in Big Sur. I hope it works.

"I was able to resolve the issue by deleting the file "~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.Bluetooth.plist" followed by restarting the computer."

You can reset the Bluetooth module on your computer to fix

connection problems associated with the Big Sur update.

To reset the Bluetooth module on your Mac, follow these steps:

Step 1: Hold down both the Shift and Option keys, and then click on the Bluetooth icon on the top right side of your screen.

Step 2: Select Debug.

Step 3: Select Reset the Bluetooth module.

Step 4: Select OK.

Step 5: Restart your Mac, and your Bluetooth connection issues should be fixed.

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/252326335?answerId=254836773022#254836773022

from

User profile for user: philmebee

Bingo!

My BeoPlay A1 speaker would not play when it was Bluetooth selected (Macbook Air 2020)

I spent months on-and-off trying to work it out and thought I would go out of my mind that my quite expensive and good quality third party speaker wasn't going to work for my movie selection etc.....

I finally figured that as well as connecting to bluetooth

you also must open System Preferences/Sound and select the device.

I think this used to be an automatic selection when you connected to bluetooth previously, but not since Big Sur.

So connect bluetooth to your device, then open Sound and select the device

(From my elated testing today I think the computer might remember my selection and do it automatically now when I select my bluetooth device from the menubar)

I just found this solution help on my Macbook Pro 2013

Deleting all plugins in "/Library/Audio/Plug-ins/HAL/" and restarting fixed this issue.

I've posted this a few times already, but it may have gotten lost in the mix. If you're unable to locate and delete the "HAL" plugin folder (sometimes it's hidden from view), try this:

• Open Terminal app
• Type in: sudo rm -rf /Library/Audio/Plug-ins/HAL/
• Restart your iMac

That worked for me and many other folks with similar problems. Hopefully it works for you too!

^THIS! Had issue with AirPods and B&W P7 wireless audio. Bluetooth would connect for about 15 seconds, with no audio and then disconnect on its own. Deleted all plugins in "/Library/Audio/Plug-ins/HAL/" and then restart fixed MY issue as suggested above by sof_gun (<Thank you!!)

Hello, I just realised why I couldn't get this fix to work either... I needed to include Macintosh HD/System at the start of the terminal command: "sudo rm -rf Macintosh HD/System/Library/Audio/Plug-ins/HAL/" Entering this followed by a restart worked perfectly for me. All bluetooth audio devices now back in action.

Thank you to whoever it was that posted that original fix!

I found for me it was specifically the InstantOn.driver which was installed my Rogue Amoeba - Piezo. Deleting this from /Library/Audio/Plug-ins/HAL/ fixed my issue with Bluetooth headphones connecting and then disconnecting after a few seconds.

hert1910, could you change the "Solved" post for this thread to what I'm posting below? Finding and deleting the plugins folder doesn't always work, because that folder is sometimes hidden from the user. The following solution, however, has worked for many people, and I think it will be more effective for everyone:

• Open Terminal app
• Type in: sudo rm -rf /Library/Audio/Plug-ins/HAL/
• Restart your iMac

Thanks.

1. Open a folder window and in the "Go" menu from the toolbar at the top of the screen click on "Go to Folder..."
2. When prompted enter the following: /Library/Audio/Plug-ins/HAL/
3. You will be taken to the "HAL" folder in Finder, which in my case contained only one subfolder, called "InstantOn.driver". Delete this folder, entering your password as confirmation when prompted.
4. Restart your Mac and hopefully everything will now work fine.

Yep, I've been using my brand new MacBook Air M1 with my Sony WH-1000MX3 headphones. I do the same thing 3 or 4 days a week: sit on the same corner of my couch, fire up the same apps on the same computer, and listen to a lecture and do some work.

Immediately after upgrading and restarting, my headphones connect (the Sony lady says in my ears "Bluetooth Connected" but no sounds comes out, and after 5-10 seconds it disconnects again. Restarted headset and laptop.

Guess I'll try deleting some files because someone on the internet said it works and I'll hope it doesn't break my laptop somehow.

C'mon Apple. This is lame. I'm already looking into 3rd party software to overcome your terrible windows tiling options/user experience, and now you've crippled my workflow. This is a work device, and the goal was for it to work right without distractions.

Update: I could not find the file, either by searching, finding my "Library" folder, etc. Luckily I found the other comment that gives the commands to put into the console, and it DID work.

(sudo rm -rf /Library/Audio/Plug-ins/HAL/

– Restart your Mac)

So yeah, all I really had to do was use superuser commands to remove files from my computer and trust that it would work! Great experience, would recommend!

This worked! https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201295